The Boston Christmas Tree will arrive today around 11 AM from Nova Scotia following its three-day journey. The 15-metre white spruce was cut and lowered to a flatbed truck on Tuesday and started its trip to Boston on Wednesday.Mary Lou Milligan of Mill Cove, Lunenburg County, donated this year’s tree which will be gifted to Boston in thanks for support following the Halifax Explosion of 1917.

This is the 42nd year of the Boston Christmas tree tradition from Nova Scotia, in thanks for the medical personnel and supplies Bostonians provided after the explosion of Dec. 6, 1917.

“The Halifax Explosion was a dark time in our province’s history, but the people of Boston were there for us, providing much needed support and aid,” said Natural Resources Minister Zach Churchill. “This beautiful Nova Scotia Christmas tree is a wonderful symbol of our continued gratitude.

“We are very grateful to the Milligan family for generously donating this year’s tree, which is the official Boston Christmas tree,” said Boston’s Mayor Thomas Menino. “The beautiful evergreen will brighten the holidays for the public on Boston Common, and we are pleased that the rich gift-giving tradition continues with our friends in Nova Scotia.”

The Christmas season officially kicks off in Boston on Thursday night, December 5th at the 72nd annual tree lighting ceremony in the Boston Common. Milligan will travel to Boston with her daughter and two grandsons for the tree lighting. The special tree lighting ceremony will be televised before a crowd of about 30,000 to a TV audience of about 300,000.

Immediately following the Boston Christmas tree lighting, Mayor Menino is scheduled to join Back Bay residents at Arlington Street for the lighting of Commonwealth Avenue Mall.

Trees along the Mall will be illuminated through April 1 with elegant white lights made possible thanks to community support and private donations raised by the Committee to Light Commonwealth Avenue Mall.

It’s not very often that we stray from our niche here of saving home buyers money on their home purchase, but we just HAVE to take today to congratulate our Red Sox for winning the World Series last night, taking game 6 of the series to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 4 games to 2.

Red Sox fans, if you’re planning to take in one of the upcoming World Series games opening Wednesday night at Fenway Park, you’ll need a lot more cash for a seat in Boston than in St. Louis.

The Boston Business Journal is reporting fans who flock to Fenway Park to see the Red Sox and Cardinals will have paid $1,451 per ticket on the resale market, according to TiqIQ. But if the Red Sox and the Cardinals return to Fenway for a sixth or seventh game, prices shoot up to $1,761 and $1,863 for the final two contests at Fenway, respectively.

That makes $1,704 the average scalped ticket price across all four potential Fenway (capacity 37,400) home games – a record-breaker by $3 among recent World Series contests, according to TiqIQ, and 81 percent more than what fans are paying for tickets to the the three potential home games in St. Louis.

In 2010, San Francisco Giants fans paid an average of $1,701 to see their teams’ World Series home games against the Texas Rangers.

Average tickets across the three potential games at the Cardinals’ Busch Stadium (capacity 46,861) are $940.

The cheapest Red Sox / Cardinals World Series tickets to Fenway average $423 across all four games.

If you find those ticket prices for a Red Sox World Series game to be a little out of your price range, check out this breakdown of tickets at Fenway vs. Busch Stadium in St. Louis:

Here’s the average/cheapest ticket prices at Fenway:

Game One: $1,451/$359
Game Two: $1,506/$375
Game Six: $1,761/$541
Game Seven: $1,863/$608

Here are the average/cheapest ticket prices at Busch Stadium in St. Louis:

Game Three: $960/$283
Game Four: $959/$296
Game Five: $920/$267

Our advice: Watch the Red Sox and Cardinals on TV and use that ticket money for a down payment on a house!

Boston area traffic is expected to be heavy today ahead of the three-day Columbus Day weekend.

The Friday before Columbus Day last year was the second busiest day on the Mass Pike with 690,000 transactions. It was only beaten by the Friday before Mother’s Day, which saw 703,000 transactions.

So far this year, the Friday before Mother’s Day has been the top travel day with 698,000 transactions.

Here is some information on Boston Area Traffic this weekend:

Before heading out, consider downloading the free Ride Wise Smartphone application that provides users access to the real time traffic information on Interstate 93, sections of the Massachusetts Turnpike, Route 3 on the South Shore and Route 6/Mid-Cape Highway. RideWise is now available on all major platforms – iPhone, Android, and Windows Phone.

To save time, money and gas, please join E-ZPass to avoid waiting in line at cash toll booths.Toll collection will resume for passenger vehicles on the Massachusetts Turnpike between Exits 1 and 6 on Oct. 15. Travelers between 1 and 6, and those who start or end their Turnpike travel in the 1-6 zone, will notice an increase in their tolls beginning on October 15th.

Traffic congestion is also anticipated on highways heading toward popular fall and leaf peeping destinations like Cape Cod, New Hampshire and Maine. CapeFLYER weekend train service from Boston to Cape Cod will be extended through the Columbus Day holiday, Monday, October 14th.

Customers may buy tickets on-board the train or on their Smartphone via the MBTA’s “mTicket” mobile ticketing app for Commuter Rail. Customers are encouraged to buy their tickets in advance. Visit CapeFLYER on the web.

The MBTA will operate on a Saturday schedule or weekday schedule on Monday, October 14th, depending on the service. Check mbta.com for details.

Sunday, The Annual Boston Athletic Association Half Marathon will begin at Franklin Park, near Playstead Road at 8:30 AM. An estimated 5,000 participants are expected for the Half Marathon.

The Stephen Perez 5K Memorial Race will begin at 11:30 AM on Hanover Street at the Paul Revere Mall.

The annual Columbus Day Parade will be held in Boston on Sunday. Marchers will step off from City Hall Plaza at 1 PM. They will proceed to Court Street, to State Street, left onto Atlantic Avenue, straight onto Commercial Street, left onto Battery Street, left onto Hanover Street, right onto Cross Street, right onto Endicott Street, right at North Washington Street and onto Commercial Street for dispersal. There will be restricted parking before and during the parade.

Monday, the annual Columbus Day Race for Women will begin at Noon on Beacon Street, Between Charles and Brimmer Streets. An estimated 7,000 runners will participate.

As if all this weren’t enough Boston area traffic delays, due to the Boston Red Sox playoff games, parking in the vicinity of Fenway Park will be restricted this weekend.

Have a safe weekend if you’re going to be out and about and in the middle of the heavy Boston area traffic.

The government shutdown has closed the John F. Kennedy Museum, the U.S.S. Constitution and the Bunker Hill Monument, and children at one Head Start program are facing the loss of meals.

The government shutdown also forced the closure of the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center in Natick and prompted furloughs at Westover Air Reserve Base and Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield.

Many of the thousands of federal employees who live in Massachusetts were also out of work as a result of the shutdown.

Government Shutdown Could Affect Football on Saturday

The most immediate effect was the closing of the many historic sites that draw visitors to Massachusetts from around the world. In Boston, restrooms at Faneuil Hall are closed with a sign instructing visitors to use a building nearby. The site of town meetings, political debates and speeches since the 1700s is operated by the National Park Service.

The government shutdown could also threaten Saturday’s football game between Boston College and Army.

Tourist officials were quick to point out that some sites remained open, including the Paul Revere House and the Old North Church. Visitors can still walk Boston’s popular Freedom Trail, although they won’t have guided tours.

The visitor center for the Minuteman National Park in Lexington also closed and there were no guided tours of the 5-mile Battle Road between Concord and Lexington.

Stay plugged in to our site for more updates on how and where the government shutdown may affect Boston area tourism and business. And for daily updates, follow us on Twitter, and be sure to Like us on Facebook!